AT&T already owns large swaths of 700 MHz in Blocks “A” and “B”, while Verizon owns most of the 22MHz in Block “C”, nation-wide. Public service agencies currently have 12 Mhz of dedicated frequencies in the 700 Mhz band. The FCC plan would allow first responders to roam amongst all those frequencies.

Public safety has been given additional spectrum since 9/11, including a 12MHz chunk on the 700 Mhz band, 10 Mhz at 800 MHz (from Nextel), 50 MHz from 4.94 – 4.99 MHz and 75 MHz from 5.850-5.925 MHZ.

In a letter (pdf) to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, Bush-era Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge used Katrina as an example of the need. Ridge, however, did not mention that Lousiana’s public service radio system was destroyed in the hurricane. It took a year to rebuild.

“The big lesson learned in Katrina was survivability of the network,” says Jerry Powlen, vice president for integrated communications systems at Raytheon, which sells radio systems to law enforcement agencies. “Everything got blown over, including cell towers. There was no gas to run generators. . . . There weren’t enough batteries, and radios couldn’t be recharged.”

The FCC says that near 100% coverage across the United States is only economically feasible if the frequencies are also available to the public. The FCC has argued that the $6.5 billion cost of building the network could balloon to more than $16 billion without a commercial partner.

Motorola, which has an 80 percent share of the public safety device market, doesn’t want competitors. Neither does AT&T nor Verizon. Cost is not a big concern for public safety users — they’re funded by taxpayers.

The FCC’s plan would provide near 100% broadband penetration across the United States. In an emergency, public service providers could use those frequencies.

“The state of Oregon’s plan to build a sprawling emergency radio network is a year behind schedule, and state officials now say they can’t be sure what the project — estimated at $485 million — will actually cost taxpayers.”

Everyone looses except Motorola. The reputation of public service professionals will suffer.